World Factbook
Guyana
Cooperative Republic of Guyana
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Literacy
male
84.2% (2020 est.)
female
86.9% (2020 est.)
total population
85.6% (2020 est.)
Languages
English (official), Guyanese Creole, Amerindian languages (including Caribbean and Arawak languages), Indian languages (including Caribbean Hindustani, a dialect of Hindi), Chinese (2014 est.)
Religions
Protestant 34.8% (Pentecostal 22.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 5.4%, Anglican 5.2%, Methodist 1.4%), Hindu 24.8%, other Christian 20.8%, Roman Catholic 7.1%, Muslim 6.8%, Jehovah's Witness 1.3%, Rastafarian 0.5%, other 0.9%, none 3.1% (2012 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.08 male(s)/female
total population
1.04 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.78 male(s)/female
Birth rate
16.68 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
7.05 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
28.2 years
total
28.7 years (2025 est.)
female
28.4 years
Population
male
405,244
total
794,099 (2024 est.)
female
388,855
Nationality
noun
Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective
Guyanese
Tobacco use
male
16.9% (2025 est.)
total
9.2% (2025 est.)
female
1.9% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
27.2% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
1.01% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
23.5% (male 95,223/female 91,272)
15-64 years
68.4% (male 281,669/female 261,261)
65 years and over
8.1% (2024 est.) (male 28,352/female 36,322)
Ethnic groups
East Indian 39.8%, African descent 29.3%, mixed 19.9%, Indigenous 10.5%, other 0.5% (includes Portuguese, Chinese, White) (2012 est.)
Child marriage
men married by age 18
11.9% (2020)
women married by age 15
6.3% (2020)
women married by age 18
32.3% (2020)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
46.3 (2024 est.)
youth dependency ratio
34.3 (2024 est.)
potential support ratio
8.4 (2024 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
11.9 (2024 est.)
Physician density
1.39 physicians/1,000 population (2020)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
4.9% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
10.5% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-6.14 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Hospital bed density
2.6 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.04 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 95.8% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 95.9% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 96% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 4.2% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 4.1% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 4% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
4.5% of GDP (2018 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
7.2% national budget (2025 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
23.9 deaths/1,000 live births
total
20.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
18.3 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
0.35% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
population is heavily concentrated in the northeast in and around Georgetown, with notable concentrations along the Berbice River to the east; the remainder of the country is sparsely populated
Life expectancy at birth
male
70.6 years
female
74.3 years
total population
72.4 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
75 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 99.5% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 99.3% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 98.7% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 0.5% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 0.7% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 1.3% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
2.75 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0.04 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
5.11 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
2.3 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
110,000 GEORGETOWN (capital) (2018)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
20.2% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth
20.8 years (2009 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-29
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
59% (2020 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
9.4% (2019 est.)